BENICIA CITY COUNCIL HANDOUTS, POWERPOINTS AND WRITTEN PUBLIC
COMMENTS
CITY COUNCIL HANDOUTS, POWERPOINTS AND WRITTEN PUBLIC
COMMENTS
November 18, 2025
6:00 PM
HANDOUT PACKET INFORMATION
Any agenda related public documents received after the Agenda Packet has been published are available in the Handout Packet.
POWERPOINT PRESENTATIONS
WRITTEN PUBLIC COMMENTS
These comments were received by 2:00 pm on the day of the meeting.
WRITTEN PUBLIC COMMENT
Horton - FLOCK_Redacted
Kirsch - Plan Bay Area 2050+ and the DEIR
1 Public Participation
The City of Benicia welcomes your interest and involvement in the City's legislative process.
Persons wishing to address the Council, Board, Commission or Committee (CBCC) are asked to voluntarily complete a speaker request form, available at the entrance of Council Chambers, and submit it to the meeting Secretary/City Clerk. Speakers, addressing the CBCC at the time the item is considered, are requested to restrict their comments to the item as it appears on the agenda and stay within the three-minute time limit. The Brown Act does not permit the CBCC to take action on items brought up during the Public Comment period.
As a courtesy, and technology permitting, members of the public may participate remotely.
Please be advised that those participating in the meeting remotely via Zoom do so at their own risk. Meetings will not be cancelled due to technical difficulties. The meeting can also be observed on Cable T.V. Broadcast - Check with your cable provider for your local government broadcast channel, or livestream online at www.ci.benicia.ca.us/agendas.
Americans with Disabilities Acts
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Meeting Procedures
Pursuant to Government Code Section 65009, if you challenge a decision of the CBCC in court, you may be limited to the issues raised during the meeting or in written correspondence delivered to the CBCC by the meeting. You may also be limited to a ninety (90) day statute of limitations when challenging certain administrative decisions, including any final decisions regarding planning or zoning.
The decision of the CBCC is final as of the date of its decision unless judicial review is initiated pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure Section 1094.5. Any such petition for judicial review is subject to the provisions of Code of Civil Procedure Section 1094.6 Public Records and Writings Received After Agenda Posting A printed version of the agenda packet for this meeting is available at the Benicia Public Library during regular working hours. To the extent feasible, the agenda packet and any writing or documents related to an agenda item for this meeting provided to the CBCC, will be made available for public inspection on the City's web page at www.ci.benicia.ca.us under the heading "Agendas and Minutes." A complete recording of each meeting is available online at www.ci.benicia.ca.us/agendas.
Contact Your Council Members
Voicemail for Mayor and Council Members: (707) 746-4213 Mayor Steve Young: [email protected]
Vice Mayor Trevor Macenski: [email protected]
Council Member Kari Birdseye: [email protected] Council Member Lionel Largaespada: [email protected] Council Member Terry Scott: [email protected]
2 From: Gregg Horton < >
Sent: Monday, November 17, 2025 5:32 AM
To: Lisa Wolfe <[email protected]>
Subject: Public comment
To the Honorable Members of the Benicia City Council:
RE: Urgent Need for Community Oversight Board and Independent Security Audit of Flock Safety System I am writing to urge immediate action regarding the Flock Safety automated license plate reader (ALPR) system currently operating in our city. Recent developments demand that our community take a more proactive role in overseeing this mass surveillance infrastructure.
RECENT LEGAL PRECEDENT ESTABLISHES PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY On November 6, 2025, Judge Elizabeth Neidzwski of Skagit County Superior Court in Washington ruled that images captured by Flock Safety cameras are public records under the state's Public Records Act.
This landmark decision recognized that the scope of Flock surveillance is "so broad and indiscriminate" that the data must be subject to public transparency.
The judge's ruling was based on several critical findings:
- Flock cameras photograph ALL passing vehicles indiscriminately, not just those suspected of crimes - The data was paid for by taxpayers and serves a governmental purpose - Government agencies cannot avoid public records requirements simply by storing data on private company servers
Following this ruling, multiple Washington cities including Stanwood, Sedro-Woolley, and Skamania County immediately shut down their Flock camera systems, citing concerns about privacy and their inability to guarantee data security once it becomes publicly accessible.
CRITICAL SECURITY VULNERABILITIES EXPOSED
A comprehensive independent security whitepaper released in November 2025 by cybersecurity researcher Jon "GainSec" Gaines has revealed alarming security vulnerabilities in Flock Safety's ecosystem. The research documented 51 security findings across Flock's devices, including 22 assigned CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures), with additional vulnerabilities still pending formal assignment.
The research identified critical flaws in:
- Authentication systems
- Cryptographic implementations
- System design vulnerabilities
- Multiple pathways to achieve root shell access on Flock devices - Wireless remote code execution vulnerabilities
3 - Information disclosure risks
These findings were disclosed to Flock Safety through a responsible disclosure timeline, yet they raise fundamental questions about whether this system can adequately protect the sensitive location data of every Benicia resident.
BROADER ACCOUNTABILITY CONCERNS
Recent investigative reporting has revealed additional concerning issues:
- In May 2025, Flock data was accessed by federal immigration enforcement agencies, potentially violating state privacy laws
- Flock is developing "Project Nova"—a platform combining ALPR data with information from data breaches, social media, and public records to track individuals without warrants - A Virginia circuit court ruled in 2024 that warrantless collection of drivers' location data via Flock cameras constitutes an unconstitutional search under the Fourth Amendment - Multiple communities, including Austin, Texas, successfully terminated their Flock contracts in 2025 due to privacy and oversight concerns
THE BENICIA COMMUNITY DESERVES ANSWERS
Our community has legitimate questions that require independent verification:
- Who has accessed our Flock data, and for what purposes? - What security measures protect our data from the vulnerabilities identified in the GainSec whitepaper? - Are the crime reduction statistics provided by Flock Safety independently verified? - What happens to our data if Flock Safety is acquired, goes bankrupt, or is compelled to share data through legal processes?
I URGE THE BENICIA CITY COUNCIL TO:
1. ESTABLISH A COMMUNITY OVERSIGHT BOARD with the authority to:
- Review all Flock system access logs and usage statistics - Investigate complaints from community members
- Conduct regular audits of data-sharing practices
- Make binding recommendations on system policies
- Ensure compliance with California privacy laws
- Hold public hearings on surveillance technology
2. COMMISSION AN INDEPENDENT SECURITY AUDIT by qualified third-party cybersecurity experts to:
- Assess whether the vulnerabilities identified in the GainSec whitepaper affect Benicia's system 4 - Verify Flock Safety's claims about data encryption and security - Evaluate risks of unauthorized access or data breaches - Provide recommendations for enhanced security measures - Make findings available to the public in an accessible format
3. IMPLEMENT ENHANCED TRANSPARENCY MEASURES including:
- Quarterly public reports on system usage and effectiveness - Annual cost-benefit analyses with independently verified crime statistics - Clear data retention and deletion policies
- Immediate notification protocols if data is breached or inappropriately accessed - Public database of all agencies with access to Benicia's Flock network The Washington court ruling confirms what privacy advocates have long argued: mass surveillance systems that photograph every resident create public records that demand transparency and accountability. The GainSec security research demonstrates that these systems carry significant cybersecurity risks that could expose sensitive location data.
Benicia residents deserve to know that their movements are not being tracked without proper oversight, that their data is secure, and that this expensive system is actually delivering the public safety benefits promised. A community oversight board and independent audit are not radical demands, they are the minimum requirements for responsible governance of surveillance technology.
I urge you to act swiftly to establish these accountability mechanisms before privacy violations or security breaches erode public trust in both this technology and our local government.
Thank you for your consideration of this urgent matter.
Respectfully submitted
Gregg Horton
5 From: Susan Kirsch <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, November 10, 2025 11:11 AM
To: Lisa Wolfe <[email protected]>; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]vista.ca.us; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected] Subject: Comment on Plan Bay Area 2050+ & the DEIR
Dear City Clerk,
Good Morning! My name is Susan Kirsch, founder, Catalysts for Local Control, a statewide organization that promotes education and engagement among elected officials and community leaders, especially around regional planning and housing. Please distribute this email to the City Council.
Who: MTC/ABAG is inviting comments on Plan Bay Area-2050+ and the Draft EIR.
What: PBA is a 15-year cornerstone plan that addresses housing, transportation, economics, and the environment. The DEIR assesses the risks and mitigation measures in 14 environmental categories, and identifies those that have "significant and unavoidable" consequences.
Why pay attention: Between 2025-2050, MTC predicts Bay Area population growth of 24% compared to the more modest estimate of the CA Dept. of Finance forecast at 6%. MTC assumes housing costs will decline and return to early 2000 levels by 2050. MTC dismissed the "Local Control" alternative offered by Livermore. These are three of many questionable PBA conclusions that require re-examination to promote accuracy and reliability.
When: The deadline to submit comments is December 18th. In-person/Zoom meetings are scheduled for 11/14, 9:40 am, Metro Center, 375 Beal Street, SF; 12/3, 6 pm, Olive Hyde Art Center, Fremont; and 12/4, 6 pm in Novato (location TBD). The MTC/ABAG ExCom will meet in the spring to vote on PBA and the DEIR.
Resources:
• Plan Bay Area's draft report appears built on false narrative," Susan Kirsch, Nov 10, Marin Independent Journal
• PBA/DEIR: A Misguided Plan with Significant Unavoidable Consequences, Catalysts' link to MTCPBA/DEIR documents, and to the slides and recording of the Nov. 3 Catalysts Call with Gaetan Lion, Tom Rubin, and Gregg Dieguez.
Call or email with questions and comments.
Best wishes,
Susan Kirsch, Founder & Director
Catalysts Institute for Local Control
POB 1703, Mill Valley, CA 94942
www.catalystsca.org
415-686-4375